Lawn and landscaping services customarily employ a diversity of cutting and trimming equipment in order to accommodate the demands of the job site and to attain a high level of productivity. To handle the most common task of cutting ground cover, a commercial service usually maintains an inventory of multiple sized rotary mowers and will typically operate the largest sized mower that can be practically used for the job. Although maximum coverage is obtained by the use of large capacity riding mowers, they cannot be used in all applications. This fact, coupled with the substantial cost of such equipment, has led many commercial services to rely heavily on the use of mid-size, walk-behind rotary mowers. Mid-size walk-behind mowers are popular among commercial cutters because they have the maneuverability of a standard twenty-one inch walk-behind mower when working in tight areas, and the power and cutting capacity of a lawn tractor for large areas.
Because mid-size mowers are fairly heavy and cumbersome pieces of equipment, the operator often employs a rear-end attachment, commonly referred to the industry as a sulky--a one or two-wheeled stand-up or seat device--that allows the operator to ride behind the mower in a reasonably comfortable standing or seated position during prolonged operation of the mower. In a stand-up sulky, the operator stands upon a floor or base frame, typically comprised of a single floor member of a pair of foot plates. In a sulky that has a seat attachment, the operator sits in an upright position upon a seat that is customarily mounted at the rear of the sulky, with the operator's feet resting upon a floor or base frame.
A major shortcoming of such conventional sulky configurations is the fact that they are configured for specific set of mower parameters, being non-adjustable both in terms of the size and position of the operator and with respect to the type of mower with which they may be safely and comfortably used.